February

Seldom offered as seed, Abutilon x hybridum is a popular group of hybrids that are frost-tender shrubs typically growing 60 to 90cm tall. The lantern-like buds open to solitary, pendulous, bell shaped flowers up to 8cm in diameter.

If you have the space in your garden this is one plant to choose. Acanthus are robust perennials with handsome, lobed foliage. In late summer, tall racemes of white flowers with dusky purple bracts appear. Used as a motive in architecture and art through ages, Acanthus is a true architectural beauty!

There are so many plants which steal the show in a way which is more subtle than just big wonderful blooms. Achillea ‘Moonwalker’ is one such plant. Growing to just 60cm tall, the rich green foliage has a fern-like appearance that is just as much the star as those wonderful golden umbels.

Achillea filipendulina ‘Cloth of Gold’ is an easy to grow plant which tolerates a fair amount of neglect which makes it a very versatile plant for use in many situations. It does require full sun for best flower production, but this is little to ask for such a grand reward.

Achillea ‘Cerise Queen’ is a carefree and generously blooming perennial which requires little maintenance to create an explosion of late summer colour. The large, flat-topped clusters of vibrant, pink flowers with tiny white centers are irresistible to butterflies, and also make excellent cut flowers.

Achillea ‘Colorado Mix’ is a compact variety growing to only 60cm (24in) tall at maturity. Flowering in shades of pink, red, yellow, white and apricot, the narrow fern-like foliage will soften your perennial border and the plants are suitable for pots or containers. The flowers are as gorgeous dried as they are fresh.

Achilleas are traditional border flowers valued for their feathery foliage and striking flat, circular heads of flowers ‘F2 Summer Berries’ is a compact variety growing to only 60cm tall at maturity. This beautiful improved mixture includes the richer tones of red, cerise and pink in addition to many pastel shades.

Achillea is a joy to the gardener for its undemanding adaptive nature and its eagerness to perform. ‘Summer Pastels’, with a soft mix of pastel coloured flowers is very easy to grow, flowering in just four months from sowing and producing flowers in abundance from spring to first frosts.

Achillea millefolium 'Proa' is an improved yarrow, a selected form that is higher yielding, with higher essential oil content, better flower production, and the flowers are more uniformly white. Preferred by those who use yarrow medicinally. Organic Seed

These native wildflowers have clustered flower heads of tiny white flowers that from a distance look like little patches of snow resting on the grass. This famous herb is terrific as a wildflower clump in a blooming meadow, they are also a favourite for cut and dried flower arrangements.

A favourite of garden designer Gertrude Jekyll. The 'Pearl' is excellent for the middle of a sunny, well-drained border, especially when planted as a large drift. A unique, easy and reliable plant to add to any border.

Achillea sibirica var. camtschatica 'Love Parade' is an upright, tufted, perennial yarrow that is native to Siberia. Very different from the common yarrow, with dense clusters of large flat-topped soft pink flowers and glossy, dark green, fern-like leaves, they remain attractive throughout the growing season.

Aconitum napellus subsp. vulgare Albidum is a superb white form of the most popular Monkshood. Hardy, long lived and maintenance free, they are choice mid to late season vertical accent plants. The stiff stems are self-supporting with handsome leathery green foliage.

Aconitum napellus ‘Newry Blue’ is an outstanding old Irish cultivar with wonderful upright spires of the deepest rich blue that tower over the back of the border. Known for its dense spires, they are every bit as dramatic as you could hope for them to be.

Agapanthus Getty White is a sparkling plant with dense clusters of white flowers on erect stems. It is a sparkling plant and is dazzling against a dark green backdrop. They are terrific as cut flowers and are suited to both formal and modern style arrangements.

The Agapanthus or Blue African Lily is one of the aristocrats of the late summer garden. Requiring only the minimum of care, the exotic combination of graceful foliage and stunning flowers is equally impressive in the border or large planter. This is a lovely plant to grow and they are very easy from seed.

Raised by the Hon. Lewis Palmer in the late 1940s in his garden at Headbourne Worthy, Hampshire. The Headbourne Hybrids is a very special strain, being both one of the hardiest that you can grow and the most “violet” blue available. RHS AGM

The Agapanthus is one of the aristocrats of the late summer garden. 'Peter Pan Blue' is a fine dwarf hybrid with neat clumps of leaves and large clusters of light- blue flowerheads. The exotic combination of graceful foliage and stunning flowers is equally impressive in the border or container.

It is only within the past decade that a number of new noteworthy members of the genus Agastache have emerged from botanical obscurity. ‘Apricot Sprite’ is an outstanding perennial that provides a sizzling blast of tubular, peachy-apricot flowers. Compact and quick growing, they flower in the first year from seed.

Agastache aurantiaca ‘Tango’ was bred specifically to tolerate wet or humid summers better than other cultivars. Dense flowering spikes of sizzling hot red-orange bloom steadily from about mid-summer and continue deep into autumn. The only problem is that if you are inclined to collect Agastache, they’re very seductive. You start with one, and the next thing you know, you’ve got ten in the flowerbed and are wondering where you can sneak another one in.

Agastache 'Golden Jubilee' has one of the most remarkable leaf colour of any plant. This bright gold-chartreuse beauty offers late season punctuation and purple bottle-brush flowers which are a powerhouse source of nectar and pollen for bees, butterflies and other beneficial insects.

Agastache ‘Arcado Pink’ is a magnificent first year flowering perennial. An extremely floriferous variety with lovely purple-pink flower spikes and fresh green aromatic foliage. This Fleuroselect Novelty Award Winner is both vibrant in colour and stamina. The aromatic leaves are edible, young growth can be sprinkled in salads, used to decorate cakes, to make a tea or floated in drinks. Agastache added to your Pimms lifts it to a higher sphere altogether.

Agastache 'Astello Indigo' is just about the most exciting breakthrough yet and it's got the award to prove it - Europe's coveted Fleuroselect Gold Medal. Compact and quick growing, they flower in the first year from seed with fabulous, upright spikes that are fully covered with deep indigo-blue flowers. The masses of fragrant blooms throughout the summer are ideal for cutting. They produce copious amounts of nectar for bees and butterflies to feast upon.

The latest introduction and additional colour in the series, Agastache ‘Asturo White’ feature spires of scented white flowers with fresh lime green spikes. Extremely long blooming, it will bloom the first year from seed, from mid-summer, right through autumn until first frosts. The plants are ideal for Northern European-type climates, at their best in more temperate conditions. A fabulous addition to beds and containers, for gravel gardens and wildlife borders.